Press release: Blue-GIFT opens 1st call for ocean energy demonstrations

Activities at BiMEP test site (Photo courtesy of BiMEP)

The €2.5 million Blue-GIFT (Blue Growth and Innovation Fast Tracked) project is pleased to announce the 1st call for applications.

Funded by Interreg Atlantic Area, the Blue-GIFT project is a coordinated ocean energy technology demonstration programme encouraging longer-term demonstration and technology de-risking across the Atlantic Area regions.

The 1st call offers support package vouchers to ocean energy companies for access to demonstration sites across the Atlantic Area, lowering costs for testing and validating technologies in real sea environments.

The project aims to support a minimum of eight floating wind, wave or tidal demonstration related projects across the Atlantic Area region.

The call will close on the 6th September 2019 at 17:00 UTC.

Which test centres can you apply to?

A series of test site access vouchers will be offered to successful applicants to support testing of devices and subsystems at the following test centres:

• BiMEP (wave and floating wind) in the Basque Country, Spain;
• PLOCAN (wave and floating wind) in Gran Canaria, Spain;
• SEENEOH (hydrokinetic and tidal) in Bordeaux, France;
• WavEC (wave and floating wind test centre) in Aguçadoura, Portugal.

Whilst not eligible for applications within the Blue-GIFT programme, the project consortium also includes three additional ocean energy test facilities who will support the project with technical expertise gained from running the Interreg North-West Europe FORESEA programme:

• EMEC (wave and tidal) in Orkney, UK (Blue-GIFT lead partner);
• SmartBay Ireland (wave and floating wind) from Galway, Ireland;
• Centrale Nantes / SEM-REV (wave and floating wind) in Nantes, France.

Who can apply?

Blue-GIFT is open to any type of enterprise wishing to demonstrate ocean energy technologies in real-sea conditions. The applicant must own the technology (or rights to the technology) being tested or validated.

How to apply?

Visit www.bluegift.eu for further information and supporting documentation, including:

• Blue-GIFT Access – 1st Call for Applications
• Blue-GIFT Access – Rules and Conditions
• Application Form

Ruari Brooker, Blue-GIFT project manager at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) says:

“Blue-GIFT will provide a significant boost to getting ocean energy demonstrator projects into the water throughout the Atlantic Area, maximising the use of existing infrastructure across the region. The project will utilise the skills, processes and expertise developed in the Interreg NWE FORESEA programme to support the development of the ocean energy sector in the Atlantic Area region, helping to stimulate economic and technological development.

“The programme offers both in-country and cross-border support for pre-commercial ocean energy demonstration projects, and we encourage technology developers to get in touch to find out how this programme can support their demonstration needs.”

Contact us now:

Test Site Access Coordinator:
Mairéad Elliott, SmartBay Ireland
Mairead.elliott@smartbay.ie

Project Leader:
Ruari Brooker, European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC)
Ruari.brooker@emec.org.uk